April 15-20 Mission Hump Day!

This has been a week of recovery and preparation.  The most noteworthy event of the week was that we hit our hump day of the mission.  We have been out 9 months and have 9 months to go.  I don't even want to think about it because the time is going so fast.  We still have so much we want to accomplish and we are just now starting to really feel like we belong here and are not just visiting.  We also look forward to being with family again and being a part of our Grand children's lives.  Jaime and Andy bought the home they have been living in for the past 3 years this week.  It closed on Friday and we are so happy for them.  We see projects for the future!

We have been worried about our Texas friends and family with all of the Spring weather, but so far we have had good reports of no damage and storms that have bypassed the area.  I love the Spring weather that we are having and being able to plant flowers.

This is really dark, but it is better than seeing all of the construction on the building behind us.  We planted trailing geraniums, hydrengia, zinnias, tomatoes, zucchini and lots of herbs.  Our balcony is beginning to look beautiful and I can't wait for it to be in full bloom.  It still amazes me what people grow on their balconies.  The tulips in the fields are just beautiful and so big.  I have never seen them so big. 

Russ decided he needed this portable wagon - not to do yard work but to haul all of the food we buy and prepare.  We can load up the wagon and just make one trip from the car to the elevator.  We might even use it on mountain hikes for our picnics.  Probably won't be bringing this home - he was just bored while I was picking out plants and decided he needed this.






We started back playing ping pong in the mornings and we are actually improving.  It is really a good workout both mentally and physically. 
I have worked really hard on my talk for Sunday in Church.  I have found if I sing the words I can learn them better, so I have been practicing that way and now I think I am ready to speak the words so that they will understand me.  If only I could understand everything I am saying! 
We had a broadcast tonight with Elder Uchtdorf for all German speaking members in Germany.  It was broadcast from Frankfurt to all of the Church Ward buildings in Germany.  I was able to understand some of what he said and it was wonderful to start to make sense of the words.  Maybe there is hope for me yet. 
We had two discussions taught in our home this week and our weekly visit with Amira.  We had a really nice lesson with Amira as we talked about Easter Week and all that took place in the ministry of Jesus Christ from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday.  We have studied from Matthew 21-28 this week and taken each day and studied what happened on that day. 
Day 1 - Palm Sunday:  Triumphal entry into Jerusalem
Day 2:  Cleansing the temple
Day 3:  Teaching ni Jerusalem
Day 4:  Continued teaching
Day 5:  The Passover and Christ's suffering in the Garden of Gethsemane
Day 6:  Trial, Crucifision, and burial
Day 7:  Christ's body lies in the tomb while His spirit ministers in the spirit world
Day 8:  The appearance of the resurrected Christ

It was touching as we shared a story of Elder Paul V. Johnson who related the story of his daughter Alisa who wrote a letter at Easter time just before she passed away from terminal cancer. "Easter is a reminder of all that I hope for myself.  That someday I will be healed and someday I will be whole.  Someday I won't have any metal or plastic inside of me.  Someday my heart will be free of fear and my mind free of anxieties... I am so glad I truly believe in a beautiful afterlife." 
Amira, said I have metal and plastic inside of me but I am not suffering from cancer like she was.  She said she looks forward to that day as well to be free from all of it, but that she can't even comprehend what that will be like.  She has only known sickness most of her life.  She said, I know I will not live a long life, but it is who I am and I want to make the most of the life I have.  She shared that she contacted a foster sister she had not talked to in 25 years and asked for forgiveness.  She said they had not had any contact and that it had been so long they couldn't even remember what happened that they were not talking.  It has been a wonderful reunion and she talks to her often.  Her body is not whole, but her spirit and mind are growing every day in relationship with Jesus Christ. 
I am so grateful for Jesus Christ and The Atonement he made for all.  He made all the difference.  He paid the price.  He is with us every step of the way.  He is our constant energy source.  It is not the light at the end of the tunnel but the light the moves us through the tunnel.  Jesus paid our debt in full.  He paid it all.  It is finished. (Brad Wilcox) 
I am grateful to my little granddaughter Preslee who sings Gethsemane so beautifully.  She sang it to me last week and it gave me inspiration for my talk.  I am so grateful she knows the story of Easter.

I hope you will enjoy this Easter Day and allow the healing power of Jesus Christ into your life.  We love and appreciate all of our family and friends.
Viel Liebe,
The Grimmett's